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Check out this video to learn how researchers determined that plants “hear” and respond to insect pests.It’s hard to tell if plants grow faster with classic rock or prefer Haydn to hip hop. But what is clear: Plants can “hear” their predators. Tiny mustard plants react to the sounds of leaf-munching caterpillars by making defense chemicals. And a new study shows that this makes the foliage a...

When you’re on a hike, or just wandering around your neighborhood, you might come across a tree or other leafy green plant and wonder what it is. Unfortunately, figuring that out can mean digging up a guidebook or spending a long time downloading images and entries from the Internet. A new app pledges to make tree identification a snap. And it delivers — but not as well you might hope.Leafsnap is...

A scientific experiment can be as close as your kitchen. But when doing science that will involve people, you’ll need to be careful about how you test your tasty creations in ways that protect those volunteers.Welcome back to Cookie Science! In a series of blog posts, I am demonstrating how to design an experiment and carry it out. We’ll go over how to collect and analyze data and much more. My...

Perry Alagappan from Houston, Texas won a Best of Category award and a trip to the London International Youth Science Forum (LIYSF) at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) 2014. Below he tells us about his experiences.What was your experience being an Intel International Science and Engineering Fair finalist like? Most memorable moments?Being an Intel ISEF finalist...

A diet full of hamburgers, steaks and processed meats isn’t good for you. Worse: It may cause cancer. But a new study suggests that eating certain starchy foods can help offset that threat.Red meat can damage DNA in the cells lining the digestive tract, explains Karen Humphreys. She is a cancer scientist at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia. She led the new study, which was published...

Meet the world’s most popular fruit. Snack-size, portable and each with its own wrapper — it’s the banana! Diners consume billions each year throughout the world. Americans eat more bananas than apples and oranges combined. And in banana-producing countries, more than 400 million people rely on bananas in order to survive.The big, bright-yellow banana most commonly found in American and European...

SCIENCEBefore reading1. What does a banana taste like? Is it sweet or spicy? What about a plantain? How do they differ? (If you’ve never tasted one or the other, ask your classmates or teacher if they have.)2. Plants can get infected with diseases, just like people. How might a disease affect a plant?During reading1. Why are diseases that affect banana plants such a big worry?2. Why...

Trapping an individual atom requires a tiny cage. Scientists recently stumbled on a way to make just such a chemical trap. Each of these nano-scale holding cells can snag and hold atoms of radon, krypton and xenon. All three elements are noble gases — and each is notoriously difficult to catch.Noble gases have no smell, taste or color. They also keep to themselves, which means they don't...

On Aug. 26, the Democratic Republic of Congo informed the World Health Organization, or WHO, that Ebola hemorrhagic fever has shown up within its borders. So far, 13 people have died. This country, also known as the DRC, is located in central Africa.Doctors without Borders has confirmed the news. (The medical group’s French name is Médecins sans Frontières). “We received confirmation on Sunday...

Bennu is a slow-spinning, fast-flying asteroid, and it's coming our way.Bennu zips by Earth every six years. Experts have been keeping close tabs on the lumpy space rock since discovering it in 1999. They are watching it because Bennu measures about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) around. That is big enough to pack a wallop if it slams into Earth.If Bennu does hit us, and there is a chance that someday...